


cupid season

by milkywei



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Babies, Gen, Getting Together, Kouhais play Cupid, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-19
Updated: 2020-06-19
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:42:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24806404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/milkywei/pseuds/milkywei
Summary: They say that kids can be brutally honest and honestly some people just need to get together alreadyIn which the first and second years have been turned into kids - Oikawa is excited to be around adorable kids, Iwaizumi digs through his childhood memories, Matsukawa is a natural with kids and Hanamaki wonders why everyone else does not find this a problem.
Relationships: Hanamaki Takahiro & Iwaizumi Hajime & Matsukawa Issei & Oikawa Tooru, Hanamaki Takahiro/Matsukawa Issei, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru
Comments: 5
Kudos: 160
Collections: My Favorite Haikyuu Fics





	cupid season

mattsun (•ิ ､•ิ): Oi Hanger, are you gonna be here soon?

HIRO **🌺** : comE QUICK PLZ WE’RE DYING OVER HERE

Oikawa frowns as he looks at the latest texts his friends have sent in the third years chat group. It is the weekend and the regulars are having a small gathering over at Iwaizumi’s house. It was Yahaba who had suggested it and Iwaizumi had offered up his house since his parents would be away on a business trip. However even though he lives just _next_ to Iwaizumi, Oikawa has never had an early bone in his body all his life. 

He wonders what help they could possibly need. Their precious kouhais are quite well-behaved — he thinks Iwaizumi has had a harder time trying to get him and Hanamaki to stay away from trouble. Maybe Hanamaki and Matsukawa are just on his case for being late again. He is slipping into his slippers at the genkan when he gets another strange text.

haji-ma: Bring five sets of Takeru’s 3-year old clothes and his toys

A wave of panic hits him. Hanamaki and Matsukawa are likely to send cryptic texts, but Iwaizumi rarely does anything of that sort. “Just what exactly is going on?!” he exclaims to his phone.

* * *

There are loud noises coming from the Iwaizumi house when Oikawa walks into the open gate. Oikawa grips tightly onto the bag of things that Iwaizumi had asked him to bring. His mother had been very confused when he asked her for Takeru’s clothes, but she did not question him when he mentioned that Iwaizumi was the one who asked to borrow them. Iwaizumi is the perfect parent foil. No parent ever questions their activities if they mention Iwaizumi’s name.

“Sorry for the intrusion,” Oikawa says as he slides open the front door to Iwaizumi’s house. 

He is not prepared for the sight that would befall him the moment he steps into the living room. There are half-naked toddlers in the house, squealing and yelling their hearts out. Hanamaki is almost passed out on the floor with a round-eyed toddler joyfully jumping on his back. There is another cream-haired toddler happily pinching and squishing Hanamaki’s cheeks. Oikawa almost misses it but he spots a dark-haired toddler seated in Matsukawa’s lap, watching the scene with a bored look on his face.

“O-our precious kouhais?” Oikawa stammers in disbelief, dropping the bag of things on the floor.

Everyone looks up at Oikawa’s arrival and it is as if time stopped for a moment before Oikawa rushes to scoop up the nearest child in his arms. “YOU ARE SO CUTE!” Oikawa exclaims, holding up baby Shinji in the air.

Shinji must have thought that this is a game because he is screaming in delight, holding his arms out like he is flying. Baby Shigeru looks over enviously and he abandons squishing Hanamaki’s face to hug Oikawa’s legs. “Me too, me too!” he demands with the biggest doe eyes, adding a small “Please” for good measure.

“Of course, he’s not even the least bit phased by how exactly our kouhais have turned into little monsters,” Hanamaki mutters, relieved that the energetic duo no longer demand his attention.

“Are you kidding, Makki? They’re adorable angels!” Oikawa retorts, now holding both Shinji and Shigeru in his arms.

Hanamaki makes a face while Matsukawa laughs. “‘Hiro hates babies. He thinks that they’re the spawns of Satan,” Matsukawa helpfully supplies, covering baby Akira’s ears.

Oikawa gasps, hugging both Shinji and Shigeru close to him. “That’s mean, Makki! You were once a baby too, you know!”

“Yeah, and I was probably a terrible baby too,” Hanamaki replies, sitting up with a groan and massaging his red cheeks. Shigeru really did a number on him.

“Well, our precious kouhais can’t be terrible,” Oikawa says, swaying both giggling kids side to side. “You’re adorable little kids aren’t you Shinji-chan and Shigeru-chan?” He realises that he is short of two baby kouhais and one Iwaizumi so he looks around the room.

“Where’s Iwa-chan?” he asks, putting Shinji and Shigeru down so he can put clothes on them.

“Ah… He’s taking some things upstairs with Kindaichi. Kyoutani went to follow him,” Matsukawa replies, moving over to get clothes for Akira too. “Those two have always been following Iwaizumi around, but now that they’re babies they really look like little ducklings.”

“Kyoutani’s even scarier as a kid,” Hanamaki huffs, dodging the pair of tiny pants Oikawa has thrown in his direction.

Iwaizumi rifles through where his mother had kept his childhood things in his room. He knows that Oikawa is definitely going to take his time to come over so he takes matters into his own hands and sees what he can do. While Hanamaki and Matsukawa are occupied with the kids, Iwaizumi goes upstairs to see what he can find. Yuutarou would cry whenever Iwaizumi lets go of him, so he carries the boy with him while he looks through his things.

He stumbles upon a box labelled ‘ _Hajime 0 - 5 years_ ’ and opens it, revealing a plethora of things he fondly remembers from his childhood. There are drawings and pictures, and most importantly toys that he used to play when he was little. 

“Hey, look at this,” Iwaizumi says to Yuutarou, holding up a godzilla action figure. The action figure is old and some of the paint has chipped off but it still looks as cool as Iwaizumi remembers it to be. Yuutarou’s eyes sparkle at the sight of the toy and Iwaizumi puts it into his hands.

“I think it should make a sound,” Iwaizumi mutters. “Hold on, let me see if I have any spare batteries lying around.”

Yuutarou quietly watches as Iwaizumi takes the toy apart to put batteries in it. Once the batteries are in, he ficks the switch and the godzilla toy lets out a garbled roar. Iwaizumi laughs as Yuutarou flinches. “Scared, aren’t you?” Iwaizumi asks the little boy. “You shouldn’t be scared. Only the coolest boys play with godzilla.”

Iwaizumi nudges the toy towards Yuutarou, who gingerly takes it in his hands again. Yuutarou flicks the switch and he only holds in his breath this time when the toy makes a sound again. Giggles escape his mouth when he realises that the sound is not as scary as he thought it would be. “Roar ~” Yuutarou playfully growls, making Iwaizumi’s heart swell at his cuteness.

“Didn’t think you can get this cute,” Iwaizumi chuckles, lightly pinching Yuutarou’s cheek.

He notices a flash of yellow move in his peripheral and he turns to see baby Kentarou hiding beside the dresser. Kentarou is even more difficult to handle as a kid and he is not as easily entertained as Shinji and Shigeru. Iwaizumi thinks that he must have slipped away when Matsukawa and Hanamaki were not looking.

“What are you doing over there?” Iwaizumi asks the sulking kid. “Wanna take a look at the cool things I have here?”

Kentarou continues to sulk but he pads over to sit next to Iwaizumi and Yuutarou. Iwaizumi watches as he puts his little hands on the edge of the box and peers inside. He looks away from the box and eyes Yuutarou and his godzilla toy. Yuutarou cowers into Iwaizumi, holding the godzilla toy protectively in his hands.

“You want the one he has?” Iwaizumi asks. “Well, Yuutarou’s playing with this one. I think I might have another one in here.”

As Iwaizumi is digging into the box for another godzilla action figure, Kentarou’s eyes catch sight of a fluffy yellow stuffed toy right at the bottom of the box. He makes a noise and tries to grab the toy, nearly toppling into the box because it is wedged so deeply inside. Iwaizumi laughs at his eagerness and pulls out the toy for him. Kentarou’s eyes sparkle when he sees the fluffy yellow duck in all of its entirety.

“Hmm… I think this belonged to Tooru. I wonder how it ended up here?” Iwaizumi murmurs, looking at the duck.

Kentarou makes grabby hands at the duck but Iwaizumi is not sure if he should be giving a dusty duck to a little boy. “I’ll wash it for you first, okay?” he tells Kentarou. “In the meantime, you can play with a godzilla like Yuutarou’s.”

Just as he says that, the shrill sound of Oikawa’s voice travels over to the second floor. “After we put some clothes on,” Iwaizumi chuckles as both boys look at him with wide eyes. “Come on, let’s go.”

With Yuutarou on his back and Kentarou scurrying after him, Iwaizumi brings down the box of his childhood things to where everyone else is.

* * *

Oikawa can barely hide the wide smile threatening to split his face when all the kids are dressed up. He is gripping his phone tightly in his hands, its storage full of pictures he had taken of the kids. “Oh, how I wish they could stay like this forever!” Oikawa gushes, patting Shinji’s head.

Matsukawa huffs from where he is looking over Hanamaki’s shoulder as the latter is searching online for answers as to why their kouhais have suddenly turned into babies. “I don’t think that’s good. Their parents would be wondering why their sons are babies now.”

Oikawa pouts at Matsukawa’s answer. “It’s just wishful thinking,” he mutters. Though deep inside he really hopes it happens.

The kids are playing with the toys that Oikawa had brought over and they seem to be in their own world. Even Yuutarou has detached himself from Iwaizumi and is playing with Akira. The other boy is still keeping close to Matsukawa, leaning against the latter’s back while he sits on the floor and stacks up building blocks for Yuutarou’s godzilla to knock over.

“Dammit, why isn’t there anything online that’s close to our situation?” Hanamaki grumbles, his shoulders hunched as he is typing on the laptop. They have gone through several websites, some of them sketchy, but yet they are still not able to figure out how to turn their kouhais back into teenagers. Hanamaki is at his wit’s end, his shoulders tensing up even more with each baby scream and giggle. Iwaizumi can practically feel the intensity of Hanamaki’s posture just from sitting next to him.

“Maybe sometimes things just happen and there’s no explanation for it,” Iwaizumi says lightly.

Hanamaki shoots him a dirty look as if saying ‘ _Really, Hajime?_ ’ before turning his attention back to the laptop to furiously type in the search engine again. Matsukawa shrugs as Oikawa and Iwaizumi look at him with raised eyebrows. Hanamaki rarely gets antsy but when he does, he turns into a nasty person. His mood has been steadily going down ever since the baby situation happened. Being around kids must be causing him real distress.

“Hey, ‘Hiro. Why don’t you take a walk outside?” Iwaizumi suggests, thumping Hanamaki’s back. “If you don’t mind, you can help me buy some stuff from the supermarket.”

“You know what, that doesn’t sound so bad,” Hanamaki replies, closing his laptop.

“I’ll come with you,” Matsukawa offers. “Your stick arms can’t possibly carry all those bags by yourself.”

“Watch it, bushy brows,” Hanamaki hisses, but his words lack any bite so it makes Matsukawa’s lips curl up into a grin.

The tension seems to have been released from Hanamaki’s body at the prospect of a kid-free walk outside and the other three exchange relieved looks when Hanamaki gets up to take his and Matsukawa’s coats. The kids are definitely going to get hungry in a while so Iwaizumi makes up a list of things to get so they can make lunch. Oikawa adds in a few snacks to the list which he knows are kid-friendly, and maybe some which are teenager-friendly too.

When Hanamaki reappears, he looks more than ready to leave. “It’s been awhile since I’ve been excited to run an errand,” Hanamaki says, taking the shopping list and money from Iwaizumi. “Since I’m so gracious, is there anything else you guys want me to get on the way?”

“You can get me milk bread from the obaa-san near the supermarket,” Oikawa pipes up.

“Latecomers don’t get my graciousness,” Hanamaki deadpans, walking to the genkan as Oikawa squawks. “Come on, ‘Sei.”

A shrill cry explodes in the house just as Hanamaki is about to put on his shoes and he lets out a groan. _This is why he hates babies_.

“What happened?” Hanamaki asks, walking back to the living room to see if his help is needed.

“Kunimi just started crying when Mattsun put on his coat,” Oikawa says, picking up Akira to try to shush him.

But Akira screams even louder, making Oikawa grimace and pass him over to Iwaizumi. Akira still does not stop crying and Hanamaki can feel the tension returning to his neck again as he watches the other kids look at Akira with wide, troubled eyes. “Hey, can we stop him before the other kids start crying too?” Hanamaki asks worriedly.

Matsukawa reaches out for Akira and Iwaizumi hands him over. The little boy is reduced to sniffles as he buries his face in Matsukawa’s shoulder, stubby arms wrapped protectively around his neck.

“Aww, he just doesn’t want to be away from Mattsun,” Oikawa coos, pulling out his phone to take a picture. “Why don’t you guys bring him along?”

Hanamaki cannot help the way his face automatically contorts. He is looking forward to a kid-free time at the supermarket, but he does not want to go alone since this is the time he is supposed to be spending with his friends. “Okay, fine. But _just_ Kunimi,” Hanamaki grumbles.

A few minutes later, Oikawa has Akira bundled up in a fluffy coat with bear ears, complete with matching bear shoes. Iwaizumi and Matsukawa look at the kid with dopey smiles on their faces and even Hanamaki’s eyes soften when he sees that the little kid is practically drowning underneath the fluffy bear coat. “You’re enjoying this way too much, aren’t you?” Hanamaki asks.

“Look, I bought all these nice clothes for Takeru but he grew out of them so fast,” Oikawa complains. “At least let me dress our precious baby kouhais in them.”

“I really don’t get you sometimes,” Hanamaki confesses but he smiles because Akira has been handed over to Matsukawa and the tall boy is happily booping the kid’s nose. He really does not get why his heart is suddenly warm either.

“Take care!” Oikawa waves to the three of them as they set out. “Don’t they look like a cute family, Iwa-chan?”

“Don’t let Takahiro hear you say that. He’s already stressed out enough as it is,” Iwaizumi replies.

“I didn’t peg Makki to be the type to dislike babies,” Oikawa muses as they walk back to the living room. “I thought he’d like them since he’s the youngest in his family.”

“Not everyone who’s the youngest in their family would end up liking babies,” Iwaizumi points out. “Takahiro’s family is not like yours. He grew up with just his mom and three sisters. He probably grew up way too fast as the only guy in his family.”

Oikawa plops down behind an unsuspecting Shigeru and starts to card his fingers in the little boy’s hair. Shigeru throws his head back to look at Oikawa and giggles as he falls backwards into Oikawa’s lap from looking too far back. Shinji laughs and crawls over to settle next to Oikawa’s legs. The two boys continue to play with their toy cars, using Oikawa’s thighs as a road track. Watching the kids make him feel warm all over. He simply cannot imagine why anyone would dislike these adorable little humans. 

Oikawa looks up to see Iwaizumi sitting next to Yuutarou and Kentarou, the both of them playing with godzilla action figures that Oikawa remembers playing with when he was a kid too. He never really liked godzillas as much as Iwaizumi, but he liked them enough to play with his action figures. Oikawa thinks that Iwaizumi might have brainwashed him into thinking that they were the coolest things to play with back when they were kids. He realises that a lot of his most treasured memories from his childhood have Iwaizumi in it and Oikawa is glad that he got to spend his childhood with him.

His best friend has the fondest look on his face and Oikawa wonders if Iwaizumi is thinking the same thing he is.

“Hey, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa calls out, making Iwaizumi look at him. “It must be nice to be a kid again, huh?”

Iwaizumi looks at Oikawa curiously but he eventually smiles, the soft and sincere one which he only reserves for him when they are in their own private space. “Yeah. It is.”

“Do you wish you never had to grow up sometimes?” Oikawa asks.

Iwaizumi lets out a grunt. “Why would I want to wish for something like that?”

Oikawa purses his lips, remembering that Iwaizumi is less of a dreamer than he is. He has always been the realist that drags Oikawa down from the clouds. As terrifying of a reality check he is, Oikawa thinks that it is what makes Iwaizumi his perfect counterpart. “It’s just a thought,” Oikawa murmurs, brushing back Shigeru’s hair while the little boy shifts his attention from cars to building blocks.

They both do not say anything else as they quietly watch the kids play — until Iwaizumi clears his throat with the gracefulness of a dying car, making the kids and Oikawa burst into laughter. 

“Iwa-chan’s so silly, isn’t he?” Oikawa says to a hysterical Shinji.

“Silly Iwa-chan!” Shinji echoes, throwing himself onto Oikawa and laughing as if Iwaizumi’s garbled noises are the funniest things he has ever heard.

“Hey, watch it kid. You cough like a grandpa too in your teenage body,” Iwaizumi retorts. “And don’t teach them that weird nickname, Crappykawa.”

Oikawa gasps, putting his arms around both Shinji and Shigeru’s heads. “Iwa-chan, don’t use such vulgar language in front of the kids!”

“Crappykawa!” Yuutarou happily repeats after Iwaizumi.

Iwaizumi laughs as Oikawa stares at Yuutarou with the most betrayed look on his face. “Yuutarou-chan- How could you say that with the most adorable face?!” Oikawa whines, reaching out to squish Yuutarou’s cheeks together.

It is so childish of Oikawa to pick a fight with a kid but Iwaizumi is glad that his best friend retains that side of him. It keeps him somewhat within his reach and reminds Iwaizumi that Oikawa is still the same boy who cries with too much snot running down his nose and makes Iwaizumi go into a dark room first so he can turn on the light for him. Even if it is for a short while, it makes Oikawa still within Iwaizumi’s reach. Oikawa may say that he appreciates Iwaizumi for keeping him grounded, but Iwaizumi thinks that Oikawa is always meant to reach beyond the clouds.

He watches as Oikawa brings a giddy little Yuutarou into his arms and swings him around, laughing while he does so. Kentarou however seems to be annoyed that Oikawa has taken his playmate away from him and starts smacking him with the godzilla toy.

“Ow- Kyouken-chan!” Oikawa gasps, turning his body away so that Yuutarou does not get caught in the hitting.

The kids look horrified at the exchange and Iwaizumi quickly takes the toy from the grumpy boy’s hands. “Kentarou!” Iwaizumi calls out sternly as the small boy glares at him back.

“Yuu-chan… play with me only,” Kentarou mutters.

“You can’t hit people just because they’re playing with someone you’re playing with,” Iwaizumi firmly tells him. “That’s bad. No one’s gonna play with you if you go around hitting people.”

“Ken-chan scary…” Yuutarou mumbles, hugging Oikawa even tighter.

Kentarou’s lower lip trembles when he sees the other two boys run over to hide around Oikawa, distancing themselves from Kentarou. The boy really looks like he is holding back from crying and Oikawa sends Iwaizumi a look. ‘ _Go and comfort him_ ,’ Oikawa says with his eyes, letting the rest of the kids hang on him as they eye Kentarou warily.

“Come on, Kentarou. I have something for you,” Iwaizumi tells the sulking boy, getting up and lightly touching his shoulder to get him to follow.

Iwaizumi turns to walk away and it takes a while before he hears tiny footsteps pad behind him.

* * *

Hanamaki and Matsukawa set off on their leisurely walk to the supermarket, passing by the big houses in Oikawa and Iwaizumi’s neighbourhood. Akira is perched on Matsukawa’s shoulders, his little hands grabbing tightly onto the curls of the tall boy’s dark hair.

Hanamaki still feels annoyed being in close proximity of a child but he cannot help how his heart twitches watching Matsukawa play with Akira and holding on to his stubby legs to make sure that he does not fall.

He has to admit, it is kind of cute.

“How are you so good with kids?” Hanamaki asks.

“Lots of practice with the twin terrors at home,” Matsukawa replies, chuckling when Akira puts his hands on his face. “I was basically Kazuya and Kazuki’s punching bag up ‘til they went to elementary school.”

Hanamaki grimaces. “And you were okay with that?”

“Well, it’s normal for kids to be energetic, you know. It’d be really strange if a kid doesn’t act like one,” Matsukawa says.

Hanamaki thinks back to his childhood, growing up with older sisters who are like over-protective mothers rather than siblings. “Well I guess I never knew what being a kid is like,” he mutters, knowing that Matsukawa hears him perfectly fine.

Matsukawa snickers. “You and Tooru are like kids sometimes.”

He laughs when Hanamaki reaches out to yank at his dark hair and Akira squeals in delight, copying Hanamaki’s actions. 

They reach the supermarket after their short walk and Matsukawa puts Akira in the child seat of a trolley so that they can shop without losing sight of him. Hanamaki realises how domestic this looks as they walk along the aisles, looking for the things in the shopping list. It is not like he has never walked around a supermarket with Matsukawa, sometimes he tags along when the other boy has to run errands for his mom. Somehow walking with a kid (that is not even theirs in the first place) makes this seem like they are a ragtag little family.

Matsukawa is pushing the trolley by leaning his weight on it with his forearms. Akira looks around with big round eyes, babbling every now and then when he sees stuff that he likes. It is painfully adorable and Matsukawa even boops his nose occasionally to make the boy scrunch his cute button nose and giggle. 

Thinking that a kid is cute seems like too much attachment to Hanamaki. He is not getting attached to a kid (even if the kid is his kouhai).

“‘Hiro-”

Hanamaki grunts in surprise when he gets pulled back by Matsukawa, almost getting hit by another person’s trolley. He has been so deep in his thoughts that he has not been watching where he is walking.

“‘Hiro, are you taking us on a tour of the supermarket?” Matsukawa asks, a wry smile on his lips. Hanamaki hates that Matsukawa always knows when his thoughts are elsewhere.

“I was looking for the eggs,” Hanamaki mutters, looking at the list.

“I think we just passed by the eggs at the back,” Matsukawa tells him. “You guys stay here for a bit. I’ll be right back.”

Matsukawa walks off to get the eggs, leaving Hanamaki with baby Akira. The little boy is quiet when Matsukawa is not around and Hanamaki is grateful enough that he is not bursting into tears like he did earlier in Iwaizumi’s living room. 

Hanamaki puts a hand on the bar of the trolley, moving themselves so that they do not block the way for anyone. He is surprised when Akira suddenly places his hand on top of his. Akira’s hand is small and his fingers are even smaller as they wrap around Hanamaki’s thumb.

“Matsu-chan?” Akira asks.

“Huh... Matsu-chan just went to take eggs. He’ll be back,” Hanamaki explains, his voice flat. He does not get the need to make his voice more high-pitched when talking to kids like Oikawa and Matsukawa do.

Akira frowns but does not say anything else. He looks away from Hanamaki as if unsatisfied by his answer but his hand is still holding Hanamaki’s. This makes Hanamaki confused. So is Akira upset or…?

Akira continues to stare far away and Hanamaki follows his line of sight to a display of chocolate rabbits. The rabbits are the ones that ooze out caramel when they are bitten into.

“You wanna get those?” Hanamaki asks, pushing their cart towards the display.

Akira makes grabby hands towards the box of chocolate rabbits and Hanamaki helps him take them from the shelf. Akira’s eyes sparkle as he is handed the chocolates and he looks at Hanamaki expectantly while holding out the box to him.

“Eh? You want me to open them for you?” Hanamaki gasps. “I can’t do that. We have to pay for it first.”

Akira frowns and looks down, still holding on to the chocolates.

“Is this your son?” a pleasant supermarket attendant near the aisle asks.

Hanamaki reddens, considerably flustered. “Uh.. no. I’m still in high school.”

The supermarket attendant flushes in embarrassment. “Ah! Sorry about that. It’s just that you dote on him so adorably that I assume you’re his parent.”

Hanamaki looks at Akira, who is still staring forlornly at the unopened chocolate box. “He’s… my baby brother,” he says, brushing back Akira’s dark wispy hair. “I’m just looking after him.”

“He’s an adorable kid,” the attendant coos. “You must be happy to be around such a cute kid.”

“I guess,” Hanamaki shrugs, not entirely lying. He is less stressed being with baby Akira than with any other child.

The supermarket attendant pulls something out from her apron pocket. Hanamaki sees that it is a single chocolate rabbit, the same one from the box. “He can have this. It’s really tasty and I think he’ll like it,” the attendant offers pleasantly.

Akira looks at the chocolate handed to him with bright eyes. He looks at Hanamaki, as if asking ‘ _Can I?_ ’. Hanamaki gestures his hand, telling him to go ahead.

Akira immediately closes his fingers around the chocolate with the biggest smile on his face. “Tell the nice lady ‘Thank you’,” Hanamaki whispers to him.

“Thank you!” Akira echoes, melting the lady’s heart.

“You’re most welcome,” the lady gushes. “Grow happily, little one!”

When the attendant walks away, Hanamaki lets out the snicker he has been keeping in. “Grow happily she said. Wait till she finds out that you’re the actual embodiment of teenage angst.”

Akira looks at Hanamaki in confusion as the pink-haired boy catches his breath from laughing. He helps Akira unwrap the chocolate rabbit and holds it out for the boy to happily nibble on. 

“But I guess as a kid, you’re not so bad,” Hanamaki mutters, a small smile on his lips.

Matsukawa finally returns with a carton of eggs and Hanamaki makes a face. “What took you so long? Were you looking for eggs or laying them instead?”

“I was comparing egg grades. You have to be detailed when you’re shopping with kids in mind,” Matsukawa explains.

“Bullshit, you went to the chips aisle, didn’t you?” Hanamaki huffs, glaring at the bags of chips hidden under Matsukawa’s coat.

“Hajime gave us money, might as well we spend it,” Matsukawa reasons with a smirk, putting three bags of Calbee spicy potato chips into the trolley. “Hey, where’d you get chocolate?”

“Some supermarket lady gave it to him because he’s cute,” Hanamaki says. “If I had known babies easily get stuff for free, I’d have walked around with a kid everywhere.”

Matsukawa chuckles, poking Akira’s cheek. “Does this mean that you’re okay with kids now?”

Just as he says that, a pair of kids dash past them, squealing in glee. “Nah, I still think they’re the spawns of Satan,” Hanamaki replies. “But I’ll make an exception for this one. This one’s cute.”

Akira looks up curiously as Hanamaki ruffles his hair. Matsukawa shakes his head, but he is smiling all the same.

“My two cute kiddos,” the dark-haired boy says, booping both Hanamaki and Akira’s noses before resuming trolley duty, pushing their trolley away and leaving Hanamaki blushing in the middle of the supermarket.

Once he has regained his bearings, Hanamaki chases after the sound of Matsukawa’s laughter.

“Do you think Yahaba would know the difference if we don’t get grass-fed free range Kobe beef?” Hanamaki asks, as they continue to get the stuff in Iwaizumi’s list. “I swear, his taste buds are ridiculously expensive.”

Matsukawa snickers. “I think that’s a teenage Yahaba problem so we’re good.”

* * *

Kentarou is still sulking when he follows Iwaizumi out to the backyard. He sits on the engawa while Iwaizumi walks to the clothes line, taking something he washed and hung up while Oikawa was dressing the kids. Iwaizumi looks back to see what Kentarou is up to. The little boy is staring angrily at the ants on the ground. Iwaizumi thinks that the boy can shoot lasers from his eyes if he stares hard enough. At least he does not look like he is about to cry anymore.

Iwaizumi walks over to the kid with the thing he just took from the clothes line, hiding it behind his back, and squats so he can get on Kentarou’s eye level. “What are you upset about, Kentarou?” Iwaizumi asks.

Kentarou frowns, still avoiding eye contact with Iwaizumi. “Nobody likes Ken-chan,” Kentarou mumbles. “Everyone says Ken-chan is scary…”

Iwaizumi does not expect Kentarou to be so honest with him. The teenage Kentarou has always been closed off to the rest of the team. Maybe it has something to do with kids and their general openness to sharing.

“Well… It’s scary when someone hits somebody else,” he tells Kentarou.

“But Crappykawa took Yuu-chan when we’re playing,” Kentarou grumbles.

Iwaizumi can already hear Oikawa complaining about how the nickname has stuck on the impressionable kids and he has to stop himself from snickering. “That’s still not a good excuse to hit someone,” Iwaizumi replies, putting on his most stern voice. Kentarou needs to know what he did was wrong.

Kentarou looks a bit guilty as his eyes shift from one spot on the ground to the other. He does not say anything and Iwaizumi thinks that he probably feels too bad to say anything. “Kentarou,” Iwaizumi calls out, making the boy finally lift his head to look at him. “Do you wanna hear a story about a boy who made lots of friends?”

Kentarou furrows his eyebrows and Iwaizumi never thought that getting judged by a kid would be so hurtful. “It’s a good story, I promise,” Iwaizumi assures him.

He takes a seat next to the boy on the engawa, keeping a small space in between them just in case Kentarou needs it. “So, there was once this cool boy who liked to play outside all day. He liked catching beetles. One time he caught a huge beetle which was as big as his fist. It walked on his arm like this-” Iwaizumi walks his fingers up Kentarou’s arm to his shoulder and neck, chuckling as the boy squirms and tries to hold in a giggle.

“One day, he found out that another boy had moved into the house next to his. So he went over with his parents to greet the family. He was excited to make friends with the boy and introduce him to his other friends, but the boy did not really mix well with the other neighbourhood kids because he had a terrible personality. He was pushy and selfish so the other kids stayed away from him and eventually the only person who wanted to be his friend was the cool boy.”

Kentarou is listening attentively as Iwaizumi tells the story. He purses his lips, a question stuck in his head. “Why does cool boy want to be friends with bad boy?” Kentarou asks.

Iwaizumi puts a hand on his chin, as if thinking deeply. “Hmm.. I think the cool boy knew that the boy was only trying really hard to make the neighbourhood kids like him. But it came off the wrong way and it made the boy sad that nobody wanted to be friends with him.”

“How does cool boy know that bad boy is not really bad boy?” Kentarou asks again, genuinely curious.

“Well, he gave the cool boy this,” Iwaizumi replies, taking out the fluffy yellow duck which he found in his box of childhood things. It is now washed and dried and it does not look dusty anymore. Kentarou’s eyes widen when he sees the duck. 

“The cool boy knew that this duck was the boy’s favourite toy and he willingly gave away his favourite toy to let the cool boy know how much he liked him.”

Iwaizumi passes the duck to Kentarou and the little boy gingerly cradles it in his arms. “They became best friends after that and always played together,” Iwaizumi tells him.

Kentarou frowns, as if he has just missed the point of the entire story. “Iwa-chan said that boy made lots of friends,” he points out.

Iwaizumi gulps, suddenly remembering that he may have missed the point too. “Oh wait. I did, didn’t I? Well uhh… they started playing volleyball and the boy made lots of friends despite his terrible personality because he’s really good at it.”

“Ok but the point of the story, Kentarou, is that if you want to make friends with someone, you need to be nice and treat them like friends first,” Iwaizumi says to the boy, gently rubbing Kentarou’s head. “If you’re mean, nobody would know that you actually want to be their friend.”

Kentarou looks at the duck in his hands and hugs it close to his chest. “Ken-chan wants to say sorry,” he tells Iwaizumi. “So Ken-chan can make friends.”

Iwaizumi smiles. “That sounds good. Let’s do that, then.”

There are only so many games that the kids can play with the toys Oikawa brought, so after a while they begin to get bored. The kids seem to have gotten more hyper aware of their surroundings and they finally notice the box which Iwaizumi had placed on the table earlier. “Tooru-chan, what’s that?” Shinji asks, tugging at Oikawa’s sleeve to bring his attention to the box. Oikawa seems to have the same attention span as them as well because he only notices the box now.

“Oh, maybe it’s Iwa-chan’s,” Oikawa says, taking a look at the label to confirm it.

“Can we look it please!” Shigeru asks, peering at Oikawa with big doe eyes.

Oikawa laughs, ruffling Shigeru’s hair. “Shigeru-chan, you could ask me to steal the moon for you with those eyes and I’d gladly do it.”

The kids crowd around Oikawa as he digs through its contents. The box mostly contains Iwaizumi’s old toys and ambiguous paintings he made in kindergarten. Oikawa takes out a stack of photographs which he is sure would interest the kids.

“Look! It’s baby Iwa-chan,” Oikawa tells the kids, spreading the photos out on the coffee table.

The kids _ooh_ and _ahh_ as Oikawa rifles through the photos. Seeing the otherwise grumpy spiky-haired boy as a smiling baby seems to fascinate the kids and their reactions tickle Oikawa greatly.

“Tooru-chan!” Shinji exclaims, pointing to a photo of little Tooru being carried by little Hajime. “Tooru-chan is so small!”

“Yeah, I used to be so small. Much smaller than Iwa-chan. Now I’m taller than him because I eat my veggies and Iwa-chan doesn’t,” Oikawa says proudly.

Shigeru scrunches his nose. “I don’t like veggies,” he claims.

“Hush now you,” Oikawa chuckles, lightly pinching Shigeru’s nose while the boy giggles. “One time, teenage you went on a diet and only ate salads for a week because you thought you were fat. But you weren’t.”

Yuutarou picks up a photo of little Tooru and little Hajime curled up together, fast asleep. In the photo, Hajime’s head is on Tooru’s stomach and despite their awkward position, they are still holding hands in their sleep. “Tooru-chan hold hands with Iwa-chan,” Yuutarou points out as if that is the most important thing about the photo.

Oikawa smiles as he takes the photo from Yuutarou. He takes out his phone to snap a picture of it. Maybe he will use it as Iwaizumi’s new contact picture.

Shinji studies the picture closely and gasps like he has just connected the dots in his head. “Tooru-chan likes Iwa-chan?” he questions Oikawa with big eyes.

“W-Wha?” Oikawa sputters, embarrassed that a kid has caught him off guard. “W-Why- We were kids, Shinji-chan! Kids hold hands all the time.”

Shigeru is tapping his chin and thinking hard, seeming to be caught in his friend’s thought process. “Tooru-chan wants to hold Iwa-chan’s hand!” he concludes. “Tooru-chan likes Iwa-chan!”

Yuutarou gasps dramatically, his eyes still glued to the picture now that it is the topic that they are fixated on.

“How did you guys even think of that?” Oikawa sighs, shaking his head.

“Iwa-chan likes Tooru-chan,” Shinji points out as if it is the most obvious thing in the world.

Oikawa raises an eyebrow. “Why do you say that?”

Shinji shrugs. “Just now Tooru-chan looked sad and Iwa-chan made Tooru-chan laugh.”

Oikawa furrows his eyebrows but then he remembers when Iwaizumi made that silly sound when he cleared his throat, snapping him out of whatever he was spiraling into. He feels his cheeks heat up when he realises that maybe Shinji has a point. That is simply not possible, though…. _Is it?_

“Tooru-chan red,” Shigeru laughs, patting Oikawa’s red cheeks.

Yuutarou abruptly looks up, as if suddenly struck by inspiration. He looks at Oikawa dead in the eye and mutters, “Too-mato.”

Oikawa does not know how to respond so he just pinches the kid’s cheeks. Kids or teenagers, his kouhais are still the same.

When Iwaizumi and Kentarou walk back to the living room, they see Oikawa and the other kids hunched over the coffee table. The brown-haired boy looks like a tree with the kids hanging from him, giggling and chattering. Shinji is on Oikawa’s back, his chin tucked on top of Oikawa’s shoulder. Meanwhile, Shigeru is in Oikawa’s lap and Yuutarou is leaning into his side.

They all look up when Iwaizumi and Kentarou walk in, the latter half-hiding behind Iwaizumi’s leg. “Ken-chan has something to say,” Iwaizumi announces.

He looks at the boy gripping the yellow duck tightly in his hand. Eventually he detaches from Iwaizumi’s leg and stands firmly by himself. “Ken-chan is sorry for being mean,” Kentarou mumbles. “Ken-chan wants to be friends with everyone.”

The other kids are still frightened but Oikawa assures them that there is nothing to be scared about. 

“Ken-chan, ducky!” Shigeru suddenly says, pointing to the duck in Kentarou’s hand.

Both Iwaizumi and Oikawa hold their breath when Kentarou visibly grips the duck in his hand tighter but then he surprises them by shakily holding it out in front of him. “This is Ken-chan’s favourite. We can play together,” Kentarou tells them.

The kids brighten up and immediately pull away from Oikawa to crowd around Kentarou. Iwaizumi’s heart swells when he sees the bright smile on Kentarou’s face as he shows off the duck toy to the other kids.

“So Tori was with you all this while,” Oikawa muses when Iwaizumi walks over to him, leaving the kids to play on their own. “I was wondering where he went.”

“You probably left him at my house during a sleepover and never took him back,” Iwaizumi says, settling down next to Oikawa.

“I never brought Tori out. You took him from my house,” Oikawa retorts.

“Then you probably did something to me that made me mad enough to take him from you,” Iwaizumi drawls.

Oikawa rolls his eyes and bumps his shoulder against his best friend’s. “You’re so petty,” he mutters.

He yelps and jolts when Iwaizumi pinches his thigh, almost hitting his knees on the bottom of the table. “You just preached non-violence to Kyouken-chan!” Oikawa chides, stopping Iwaizumi by grabbing onto his hand.

“Technically, I told him that he shouldn’t hit anyone without a good excuse,” Iwaizumi says.

“Then what’s your excuse for pinching me?!”

“You’re annoying.”

Iwaizumi laughs as Oikawa’s face turns a furious shade of red, his cheeks puffed up as he holds back all his insults since there are kids in the room.

“What were you guys looking at?” Iwaizumi asks, eyeing the pictures spread on the coffee table.

“I was showing the kids your childhood pictures,” Oikawa replies, picking up a photo and showing it to his best friend. “Look at this kid. So lame.”

The picture shows 5 year old Hajime holding a big rhinoceros beetle in his hands. The beetle is as big as both his palms combined and he looks really pleased with himself.

“You were such a cute baby,” Oikawa sighs, taking another photo of baby Hajime from the pile. “Where did that cute baby go?”

“You’re creepy,” Iwaizumi decides, picking up a photo of him and Oikawa standing side by side, big smiles and victory poses. 

He swipes his thumb over the two happy boys, looking like they could have taken over the world if they wanted to. Oikawa glances over to see what Iwaizumi is looking at and he smiles as he remembers when that photo was taken. It was the day that Iwaizumi had announced that Oikawa would be his best friend forever (yes, Iwaizumi was the one who said it), and the adults laughed at their cuteness while Oikawa’s mom took a picture to commemorate the moment.

He is still holding onto Iwaizumi’s hand, but the latter has flipped his hand so that both their palms are touching. If Oikawa shifts his hand, he could line his fingers to slot them in between the gaps of Iwaizumi’s.

“Hey, Tooru,” his best friend murmurs, not looking up from the picture. “When we were kids, I couldn’t wait to grow up.”

“Sounds just like you,” Oikawa comments with a smile. “Always been a realist, huh?”

“And you’ve always been a dreamer,” Iwaizumi replies with a little laugh. “You seemed to have a new dream every week. So when we were younger I thought- Man, I can’t wait ‘til we grow up so I can see Tooru chase his dreams.”

Oikawa freezes when he hears Iwaizumi’s reply. He does not even realise that he has been holding in his breath until Iwaizumi intertwines their fingers together and squeezes his hand. He turns to look at Iwaizumi, who is still looking at the picture.

“Iwa… Ha- Hajime.”

Iwaizumi finally tears his eyes off the picture to look at Oikawa. His best friend smiles, warm and gentle. “Hmm?”

“You should chase after your dreams too,” Oikawa tells him, feeling the heat creep up his face and messing with his brain.

Iwaizumi chuckles. “Tooru, you’re never meant to be chased after.”

“You’ve always been a star for the most wistful of stargazers,” he quietly adds.

He feels his best friend make a move to pull his hand away but Oikawa quickly grabs it again and leans his head on Iwaizumi’s shoulder, facing away so that he can hide how red his face is right now.

“I don’t wanna be stuck in the sky,” Oikawa mumbles, audible enough for Iwaizumi to hear. “I wanna be right here next to you.”

A few beats pass and he finally feels Iwaizumi lay his head on his. 

* * *

Hanamaki still finds it fascinating how small Akira’s hand is. It only covers the pad of his palm, yet Akira holds Hanamaki’s hand with so much trust and certainty, as if Hanamaki would never let him go.

Matsukawa is holding the little boy’s other hand while they walk back to Iwaizumi’s house. Occasionally, they both would hoist a giggling Akira into the air as they walk. It is terribly cute how the little boy enjoys it so much and Hanamaki thinks that he is going to miss baby Akira when he turns back into teenage Kunimi.

“We’re back!” Hanamaki yells out as they enter the house.

There is a pattering of feet before four faces peek out from the living room. “Makki-chan!” Shigeru and Shinji yell out, immediately running towards the pink-haired boy.

Hanamaki thinks that he sees his life flash before his eyes but luckily Iwaizumi is quick to scoop the two little monsters up in his arms before they can jump Hanamaki. “Hey, no jumping on Makki,” Iwaizumi chides them to deaf ears as the two boys are giggling from where they are trapped within Iwaizumi’s arms. He shoos the kids back into the living room to continue playing.

“Welcome back!” Oikawa greets with a mischievous grin. “So how did your little family outing go?”

Iwaizumi sends Oikawa a look but they are both taken by surprise when Hanamaki answers, “It was fun.”

Matsukawa is helping Akira take off his coat and his shoes. “Someone thought Akira was ‘Hiro’s son,” Matsukawa pipes up.

“They didn’t have to know that!” Hanamaki hisses as Iwaizumi and Oikawa are stiffening their laughter. 

“From baby hater to teen dad. I’m so proud of you, Makki,” Oikawa coos, fake wiping tears from his eyelids.

“Shut up!” Hanamaki glares at Oikawa but his facial expression immediately softens when Akira pulls at his pant leg.

“Makki-chan, chocolate please,” Akira requests when Hanamaki kneels to get on his eye level.

“Let’s wait until after lunch? You’re gonna be too full to eat lunch if you have it now,” Hanamaki tells the boy, brushing his messy hair back.

Akira blinks owlishly but he nods in understanding and runs over to the living room to play with Yuutarou. A telltale snap of a camera shutter reminds Hanamaki that he has some of the most annoying friends. He grumbles when he sees Oikawa peek at him from behind his phone.

“It’s so cute to see you talk to kids, Makki,” Oikawa grins.

“I hate you,” Hanamaki mutters, stomping to the kitchen with the groceries.

Matsukawa trails behind him and passes Oikawa a bag of milk bread. “He doesn’t hate you,” he snickers.

“I’ve always known,” Oikawa gleefully replies, hugging the milk bread to his chest.

“What are we having for lunch?” Matsukawa asks Iwaizumi as the latter takes out the items from the bags.

“I thought of making yakisoba but I’m not sure if it would suit the kids’ taste,” Iwaizumi frowns. “So I’m making hamburg steak instead.”

Matsukawa’s eyes light up at the mention of his favourite food and Hanamaki nudges him by the elbow. “He’s meaning to say that you have a kid’s taste,” Hanamaki tells his friend.

He yelps when Matsukawa merely boops his nose, Hanamaki’s face turning a deep shade of red as he scrambles to cover his face. Iwaizumi and Oikawa watch the exchange curiously. Something definitely happened between the both of them.

Meanwhile, Oikawa helps Iwaizumi take out the items from the bags for him to use. Iwaizumi does not notice that Oikawa is reaching into the same bag he is and their hands brush against each other. They both quickly retract their hands, faces flushed as they look anywhere but at each other. Hanamaki and Matsukawa raise their eyebrows at the exchange. Something definitely happened between the both of them too.

“I’m tired from walking,” Hanamaki announces. “Gonna lie down on the couch.”

“Okay, gramps,” Oikawa replies.

Hanamaki flips Oikawa off before leaving the kitchen while Oikawa sticks his tongue out in response. ‘ _Absolute kids_ ,’ Matsukawa thinks, following Hanamaki to the living room to check up on the kids.

The kids are seated in a circle, listening to Akira tell them about his adventure at the supermarket. Akira brightens up when he sees Matsukawa and gets up to pull him to their circle. “Matsu-chan push me on the trolley,” Akira says, settling on the floor again and tugging at Matsukawa’s arm to get him to sit next to him. “Matsu-chan touch Makki-chan nose.”

The kids gasp dramatically and fixate on this part of the story, looking at Matsukawa to get the information from the source. “Does Matsu-chan like Makki-chan?” Shinji asks, looking at Matsukawa with the most serious look on his face.

Matsukawa is confused as all the kids have now turned their attention to him, even Kentarou who is hugging a stuffed duck. He glances at Hanamaki on the couch, who is using his phone with his earpiece on so he does not hear anything. “Of course I like Makki-chan. He’s my best friend,” Matsukawa replies, turning to look back at the kids.

The kids look at each other, but then look at Matsukawa again with more determined eyes. “ _Like_ like,” Shigeru tries again, as if Matsukawa is missing the point. “Like how Tooru-chan _like_ Iwa-chan.”

Matsukawa raises an eyebrow. Oikawa’s pining on Iwaizumi has been clear as day but he is surprised by how the kids ( _actual kids_ ) are able to catch on. “Hmm.. Maybe…” he replies with a shrug, causing the kids to squeal in excitement. He cannot help but chuckle — they are just too adorable.

Shinji walks up to Matsukawa and whispers to his ear, “Tooru-chan and Iwa-chan held hands.”

At this point, Matsukawa wonders if his kouhais are turned into kids just so that they can meddle in their love lifes without any repercussions. “It won’t work on Hanamaki,” Matsukawa says, going along with their intervention. “He’s dumb so he won’t know that I like him even if I hold his hand.”

The kids whisper conspiringly (with dramatic reactions from Shinji and Shigeru) until Yuutarou immediately blurts out, “Kiss him!”

There is a chorus of hushed chatter and agreement. “Yes! Kiss Makki-chan,” Shigeru agrees. “Kiss him now!”

Matsukawa actually laughs at Shigeru’s suggestion. “Now? Like right now?”

“Yes!” everyone replies, nodding vigorously.

He glances at Hanamaki again, who is rolled over to his side, his back facing the kids. Maybe he should just try. If things do not turn out okay, he can just blame it on the kids anyway.

Akira rubs Matsukawa’s leg with his small hand, peering up at him with doe eyes. “Matsu-chan scared?” he asks.

Matsukawa smiles and ruffles the boy’s hair. “You’re asking me to put my heart out for the most beautiful boy here. Of course I’m scared.”

“You can do it Matsu-chan!” Yuutarou assures him and the other kids echo and nod in agreement.

Matsukawa pads over to where Hanamaki is lying on the couch. He turns back to look at the kids, all of whom are watching but then pretending to be doing something else so that Hanamaki does not get suspicious. He is fully convinced now that they are turned into kids just to get the four of them to stop dancing around each other.

Matsukawa turns to face Hanamaki’s back. Of course, he has always known that he has had feelings for his best friend for the longest time but he is scared to act on it since he values their friendship a lot. Hanamaki is a hurricane, volatile and flighty, but Matsukawa thinks that three years has brought him into the eye of Hanamaki’s hurricane. Where people see arrogance and judgement, Matsukawa sees a heart en garde and child-like innocence.

He reaches over to poke Hanamaki’s cheek, causing Hanamaki to roll over in response. “Issei, wha-”

Hanamaki’s eyes widen when Matsukawa leans in to press a kiss to his nose. The kids let out hushed squeals, witnessing the exchange from afar. As abrupt as his actions are, Matsukawa suddenly pulls away but Hanamaki stops him by holding onto the back of his neck.

“The kids told me to kiss you,” Matsukawa says flatly, as if reporting the current weather.

Hanamaki is confused for a moment but then he notices the faint blush on Matsukawa’s cheeks and he gets a surge of confidence. “You call that a kiss?”

He pulls Matsukawa in again, this time pressing their lips together in a proper kiss. The kids simply cannot contain themselves as they burst out in excitement.

“Matsu-chan did it!” Shinji cheers and for once Hanamaki is glad for the enthusiasm that kids possess because the feeling of Matsukawa laughing against his lips is really very nice.

Oikawa walks in at that exact time to see what the commotion is all about and he makes a sound between a siren and a shriek when he sees the two of them on the couch.

“Iwa-chan, they’re kissing!” Oikawa yells, immediately taking out his phone to take a picture before Hanamaki pushes Matsukawa away.

“About damn time, Issei!” Iwaizumi yells from the kitchen.

The kids are immediately crowding around Hanamaki and Matsukawa when they pull away from one another and Hanamaki gets an armful of Akira. “Makki-chan happy,” Akira giggles, wrapping his arms around Hanamaki.

“You scheming kids” he mutters with a smile, brushing his fingers through Akira’s hair. He glances at Matsukawa, who is trying to give all his attention to the kids (and Oikawa) chattering to him at the same time.

“Honestly Mattsun, if all it took for you to kiss Makki is for a kid to ask you to, I would have let the two of you spend a day with Takeru,” Oikawa says.

“I’m not having an Oikawa meddle with my lovelife,” Matsukawa deadpans.

Oikawa rolls his eyes and pulls Shigeru into his arms. “My precious kouhai, you will never mind anything I do to you, right?” Oikawa asks the little boy, patting his head. Shigeru looks confused but he smiles all the same.

“So… did they do something about you and Hajime too?” Hanamaki asks, looking at Oikawa with a smirk.

The brown-haired boy just presses his lips together in silence and stands up with Shigeru still in his arms. “What is that, Iwa-chan? Do you need my help?” Oikawa calls out off-key.

“Okay, I’m coming!” Oikawa yells, rushing to the kitchen with the little boy.

Both Matsukawa and Hanamaki laugh when they hear Iwaizumi’s stressed groan a few seconds after that.

Lunch is a calm affair as the kids are surprisingly well-behaved while waiting for their food to be served. Oikawa wonders if maybe their energy is slowly depleting and thinks that a nap after lunch would sound good.

They are all seated around the coffee table with hamburg steaks and potato wedges on paper plates. The four third years are stiffening their laughter as they watch the kids almost doze off while chewing their food.

“You know it really isn’t much different than watching their teenage selves eating after a match,” Matsukawa snickers as Shinji is half-dozing off in his lap.

Shigeru is already curled up against Oikawa, eyes almost fully shut but still opening his mouth to eat the steak pieces that Oikawa is feeding him. Kentarou is seated beside Iwaizumi, a plastic fork gripped in one hand while the other is holding his fluffy yellow duck. His forehead is almost touching the food on his plate and sometimes Iwaizumi has to pat his shoulder to wake him up. Meanwhile Yuutarou is on Iwaizumi’s other side, fully passed out with his cheek pressed on the table.

Akira is the only one still somewhat functioning, settled in Hanamaki’s lap, but it is only a matter of time until he falls asleep too with how slowly he is chewing his food.

“Do you think they would remember everything that happened today when they turn back into teenagers?” Oikawa asks.

Hanamaki lets out a snort as he cuts up the steak pieces for Akira. “This one would be the first to declare amnesia,” Hanamaki says, nodding towards the boy in his lap. “He would never admit that he was a cute baby.”

“Well, I’m gonna make them remember it then,” Oikawa grins, sending the pictures he took on his phone to their team chat group.

“We still don’t know why they turned into babies or how to turn them back,” Matsukawa points out. “What if they never turn back?”

“I’m sure they will,” Iwaizumi assures them.

Oikawa suddenly realises something and turns to Iwaizumi with the most curious look in his eyes. Though he thinks that he might just be imagining things and stops himself from bringing it up in front of Hanamaki and Matsukawa. He will ask Iwaizumi about it later.

“Alright, at this rate my legs are really going to fall asleep,” Hanamaki grunts, wriggling his legs as Akira really fell asleep on him and has become a deadweight. “Hey, should we just have them nap in the living room? Seems like we can fit all of us in here.”

Iwaizumi nods. “You know where the futons and blankets in my bedroom are, right? You can bring them down while we wash the kids up.”

“Mattsun should help!” Oikawa suggests with a grin. “Makki’s stick arms won’t be able to carry heavy things.”

Matsukawa laughs as he holds Hanamaki back from hitting Oikawa. “He’s not wrong, ‘Hiro,” he tells Hanamaki.

“One day I’ll prove all of you wrong and you’ll see!” Hanamaki retorts. He glares at Iwaizumi for good measure and the latter merely rolls up his shirt sleeve to expose his bicep with a cocky smirk.

They move along with their assigned tasks. Hanamaki and Matsukawa head upstairs for the futons. Iwaizumi clears the plates on the coffee table and moves it to the side while Oikawa wakes the kids up to get them to walk to the kitchen.

“You had something to do with this, didn’t you?” Oikawa asks when it is just the two of them alone in the kitchen with the kids, who are zoning out and not likely listening to whatever they are saying.

Iwaizumi makes a non-committed sound while he carries Kentarou to wash the steak sauce on his face. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Iwa-chan, I’ve known you all my life,” Oikawa huffs. “And I know that you’re being _really_ calm about this.”

“I am always calm,” Iwaizumi replies, not missing a beat.

“Come on, tell me! What did you do?” Oikawa asks, leaning closer towards Iwaizumi. “Black magic? Did you sell your soul to the devil? _Are the kouhais in on it_?”

Iwaizumi clicks his tongue and lightly pushes Oikawa aside before he moves on to wash Yuutarou’s face. “No, it’s not black magic and no I didn’t sell my soul to the devil,” Iwaizumi sighs in defeat. “They are the ones who came to me to solve a problem.”

Oikawa did not expect Iwaizumi to admit to his accusation but now his curiosity has really peaked. “Iwa-chan, are you a mystical being?” he asks in disbelief.

His best friend rolls his eyes. “I’m human. You know that.”

“Let’s just say some things can’t be explained,” he continues, putting Yuutarou down and picking up Akira next.

Oikawa feels that Iwaizumi is never going to give him an answer so he decides to drop it. Instead, he moves on to his _next_ question. “What did the kouhais need help with?”

“Issei and Takahiro,” Iwaizumi replies nonchalantly. “They’re tired of seeing them dance around each other and just want them to start dating already. Personally I think this is a valid problem.”

“They’re playing actual cupids!” Oikawa gasps. “Does that mean that they’re kinda aware of what they’ve been doing? They’re gonna turn back into teenagers right?”

“About their actions… I’m not so sure if they’re even aware of it,” Iwaizumi honestly says, closing the tap once everyone has been washed. “Like I said, some things can’t be explained. But yes, they’re definitely gonna turn back to teenagers once they wake up from their nap.”

Oikawa purses his lips as Iwaizumi ushers the kids out of the kitchen and into the living room. There is one last thing that he wanted to know about. If the kids played cupid for Matsukawa and Hanamaki, have they been playing cupid for him and Iwaizumi too?

However, he decides not to ask because Iwaizumi is definitely going to deflect the question.

With how Iwaizumi smiles at him the entire time they are in the kitchen, Oikawa thinks that he is okay with how things turned out.

When he walks into the living room, the futons and blankets have been laid and Iwaizumi and Matsukawa are tucking the kids in one by one. They immediately fall asleep the moment their heads hit the pillow, snoring soundly underneath the piles of blankets. The four third years lay down on the futon too, exhausted after spending half the day entertaining five kids.

Oikawa notices that Hanamaki is half-snuggled into Matsukawa’s side while he has Akira curled around his other side. Matsukawa is using his phone but he does not seem surprised about having Hanamaki being so close to him. “Alright, are we gonna talk about the elephant in the room?” he chirps, wriggling his eyebrows at Hanamaki and Matsukawa. “Was today a good day for you guys?”

Hanamaki hums, eyes closed so he does not fall for Oikawa’s teasing. “Today’s great. Might get a boyfriend when I wake up from my nap.”

Matsukawa snickers quietly. He turns to Oikawa and Iwaizumi, both of whom are lying down with a small gap between them. Iwaizumi has his eyes closed too but Oikawa is still wide awake. “Was today a good day for the two of you too?” he asks.

“You can say that,” Oikawa replies. What Matsukawa does not see is Iwaizumi lightly squeezing Oikawa’s hand under the blanket, their fingers intertwined.

“So… What do we do if they are still kids when they wake up?” Matsukawa asks, slightly worried.

“Mmm.. I’m sure they’ll turn back when they wake up,” Oikawa replies, letting out a sleepy yawn.

Oikawa cannot see his face properly with how his eyelids are starting to get heavy, but he is sure Matsukawa is frowning. “How are you so sure?”

Iwaizumi is already fast asleep next to Oikawa, his light snores influencing him to close his eyes too. 

“Let’s just say... some things... can’t be explained…” Oikawa mumbles, drifting off to sleep.

* * *

Kunimi wakes up shivering, pulling the blanket on his body over his head on instinct. He suddenly realises that he is pulling the blanket over his _bare_ body and his eyes are immediately wide open. He pulls the blanket down to his neck, just as a set of clothes is being dropped onto his face.

“Glad that you’re finally awake,” Yahaba says teasingly. “We thought you died as a side effect.”

Kunimi grumbles and sits up to put on his shirt. The past few hours have been hazy in his head and he has a migraine to top it off. It seems that he is the last one awake as everyone else is already dressed. Kindaichi passes him a glass of water and Kunimi drinks it gratefully. “I am never agreeing to ambiguous plans ever again,” he mutters grumpily. “God… I can’t even remember what happened.”

Kindaichi chuckles as he takes the empty glass from Kunimi. “Well, Oikawa-senpai sure kept us up to date,” he says. Kunimi furrows his eyebrows but Kindaichi passes him his phone to show him the messages in the chat group. Oikawa had sent them _tons_ and he grimaces at how his phone storage is going to explode with the amount of pictures.

“Aww, Kyoutani, look! Guess we finally have an explanation as to why you woke up holding that duck toy,” Yahaba coos, showing Kyoutani a photo of baby Kentarou hugging onto the fluffy yellow duck.

Kyoutani glares at Yahaba but says nothing, sitting as far away from said fluffy yellow duck as possible.

“Do you think the plan worked?” Watari asks, scrolling through the pictures with a smile on his face.

“I guess it did,” Kunimi drawls, clicking on a picture of Hanamaki and Matsukawa kissing on the couch.

“ _Nasty_ ,” Watari comments, scrunching his nose but snickering all the same. “Can’t believe I missed that.”

“What about Oikawa-senpai and Iwaizumi-senpai?” Kindaichi pipes up. “Did they get together too?”

Yahaba has scrolled to the top of the picture chain but he does not see any pictures of the both of them together. “Well, I don’t think Oikawa-senpai would send his picture with Iwaizumi-senpai,” he reasons. “But maybe we gave Oikawa-senpai enough of a push? Iwaizumi-senpai wasn’t supposed to know about our second plan anyway.”

“Where are they?” Kyoutani asks. The rest of them suddenly realise that they have not seen their senpais since they woke up.

“I didn’t see anyone in the kitchen,” Kindaichi frowns.

“I don’t think they’re upstairs too,” Watari adds on. “I went to the bathroom earlier.”

Just as he says that, a garbled noise comes from the futon. The five of them seem to have finally noticed that there are four tiny lumps underneath the blanket. All of them feel a shiver run down their spine.

“Did Iwaizumi-senpai mention anything else about after waking up?” Yahaba asks, dread in his voice.

Watari shakes his head timidly. “He just said that the five of us will return back to normal.”

“Told you guys this wouldn’t be a good idea,” Kunimi hisses.

Yahaba places his hands on the blanket while the other four watch with wide eyes. He slowly pulls down the blanket to reveal four babies in diapers, all of whom resemble their third year seniors.

“Babies?!” Kunimi is freaking out. “At least he turned us into toddlers- We can’t possibly look after babies!”

The five of them stare at the four babies. Baby Tooru giggles and claps, looking excited to be surrounded by so many people. Beside him, baby Hajime is sucking on his foot. Meanwhile, baby Issei is staring at everyone with wide round eyes while baby Takahiro has rolled onto his stomach and is struggling to roll back.

“Heh… They look kinda cute,” Kindaichi says, trying to salvage the situation. He picks up baby Takahiro by the armpits and Takahiro makes a gleeful sound.

Just a few moments after he says that, a loud ripping sound comes from Takahiro and a pungent smell follows.

“We’re doomed,” Kyoutani simply says.

**Author's Note:**

> to be very very honest, i don't think i would have the answer for any of the whimsicalities in this fic so as wise iwa-chan said: Let’s just say some things can’t be explained.
> 
> i'm @miyaagiboys on twt ( ‾́ ◡ ‾́ )


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